Saqlain ends Karthik's sunny day

Life can be a mite unfair sometimes. As the West Indies took their leave of England after a tour that was blighted by poor organisation and inclement weather, so India commenced their preparation for the forthcoming three-Test series against England on a sun-kissed day on the south coast.

And whereas the tourists from the Caribbean were granted just one three-day fixture - a soggy event against Somerset at Taunton that amounted to less than half a day's play - before the first Test at Lord's, so India have been afforded a four-day match against Sussex, the current county champions, and a three-day contest against England 'A'. Or England Lions, as they are now known.

Whether India would have been entirely happy with the selection of a weakened Sussex side that was missing Chris Adams, Murray Goodwin, Luke Wright, Mushtaq Ahmed and Rana Naved is a moot point. But that is generally the way of the counties these days.

In Sussex's defence, there are some mitigating circumstances. Adams and Wright are apparently carrying niggles after a Twenty20 Cup campaign that saw the county play three fixtures in the four days immediately before this match. Goodwin, Mushtaq and Rana, for their part, are probably due a mid-season rest, with Goodwin having played in every first-class and one-day fixture for the club this season.

'We are very supportive of this game against India and we wanted to put out the best side available,' said Gus Mackay, the Sussex chief executive. 'But it has to be a balance and it gives some of the younger players an opportunity they may not necessarily have. It is also, to a certain extent, the price of success.'

Taking into account the four-day curtain-raiser against MCC at Lord's and two tourist matches - the other is against Sri Lanka 'A' later this month - Sussex have an extra 11 days' cricket this season outside domestic competitions. Or 14, if one includes the three-day game against Cardiff UCCE at Hove in May. So fair play to Sussex.

Less palatable, however, was the confusion surrounding the time of the start of play. Many of those inside the ground were under the impression that the match would begin at 11am, as was widely advertised in the national press, only to discover that they had to wait until midday before the first ball was bowled. The reasons given for the late start were the presence of Indian television cameras and the time it took to clean up the ground after the Twenty20 match against Hampshire on Friday evening.

All that notwithstanding, India enjoyed some fruitful batting practice for the first Test, which starts at Lord's a week on Thursday, after electing to bat first on a relaid pitch that played reasonably well, apart from showing just the occasional signs of variable bounce. Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly - certainties to play at Lord's - were rested following the country's recent one-day exploits, which included a three-match series against South Africa in Ireland. Sussex, for their part, fielded Chris Liddle as a temporary replacement for Mike Yardy until the mid-afternoon arrival, via train, from Nottingham of the England one-day player, whose services were not required at Trent Bridge.

Dinesh Karthik and Wasim Jaffer, the likely opening partnership at Lord's, put on 37 for the first wicket before Jaffer, who recorded a pair in the first Test of the recent two-match series against Bangladesh (though he did score a century in the second Test), thin-edged Robin Martin-Jenkins.

Karthik, who looked to get forward at every opportunity, eased his way to a 115-ball fifty as he and Gautam Gambhir put on 129 for the second wicket in 41 overs. It took Saqlain Mushtaq, making his maiden first-class appearance for Sussex after being granted British citizenship last Monday, to part them when he bowled Karthik, who was possibly playing for the doosra, through the gate. The last time Saqlain played against India - at Multan in 2004, in his most recent Test appearance - the off-spinner returned figures of one for 204 as Pakistan crumbled to an innings defeat.

Thereafter, Rahul Dravid, who remains unbowed on 57, played with greater freedom than his colleagues, though he was given a life on 11 when Liddle, by now a substitute fielder for Martin-Jenkins, grassed the India captain at mid-wicket off the left arm spin of Yardy. India closed on 281 for three and with power to add.